The present invention relates to a ski safety binding which is releasable laterally, and possibly vertically with respect to the ski, against the action of a resilient locking arrangement. This type of binding is intended to assure the safety of the skier in response to torsional stresses on the leg bone (lateral release), and comprises:
(1) a vertical pivot integral with a base attached to the ski;
(2) a binding member swingably mounted on the pivot and carrying means for holding the boot;
(3) a locking arrangement comprising holding means mounted in the binding member and assuring the retention of the boot in a predetermined position on the ski, the arrangement comprising at least one resilient element and opposing a vertical and a lateral retention force, respectively to vertical elevation and to lateral displacement of the boot, said resilient element being preset to permit release of the boot when it is placed under a predetermined constraint in the plane of the ski; and
(4) a compensating mechanism acting upon the locking arrangement to produce variations in the lateral retention stress on the boot inverse to the variation in the vertical retention stress, said compensation mechanism comprising two members movable relative to one another, the mechanism compensating for the increase in the boot retaining force during constraint on the binding member in a vertical plane, e.g., in the event that snow is present between the sole of the boot and ski, producing friction between the retaining means and the sole of the boot.